Steady Damage
by XxRingleaderxX
Summary: My first Joker background story! Please R&R is widely accepted and appreciated!
1. Crash

_**"Everything was falling, trust in what was nothing" ~Crash Fit for Rivals**_

Claire Rivera was an experienced therapist if she said so herself. She had been head therapist at Arkham Asylum for the Criminally Insane for two of the three years she worked there. Every one of her co-workers assumed she slept her way to the top, but that was only speculation. Truth was she _cared_ for the patients she worked with. She did for the patients what they absolutely needed. Like when Thomas Blake needed treatment for paranoia schizophrenia. Or when she helped Tommy Elliot with being a sociopath. But this case was new for her. She's never treated anyone under the age of 21. This- this _child _should've been nothing compared to what she was used to. If only she knew what was to come.

"Hello Jack, My name is Dr. Rivera." He looked up at her with sad, almost distraught, eyes. "I'm not crazy. I don't know why i'm here. I didn't do nothin'." She scribbled something down in his case file and looked back up at him. "Well I'd love to hear all about it, but if you're not ready to talk-"

"I _really_ hate school." He began.

_I dreaded the moment school let out. I'd make today different. I'd find his sister, Joy, and get to the car with no troubles... Right...? I scooped my books and papers hastily into my book bag and slung it over my shoulder. "Now, class remember I dismiss you. Not the bell. Now sit down." The teacher yelled over the commotion as she pointed to a group of loud girls standing in the back of the room then to the desks around them. They rolled their eyes and sat on desks and laps. Aiden was already making his way over to me. Come on bell! Come on bell! Ring! Just this one time ring on time! I yelled in my head as I watched the second hang tick ever so slowly. 5... 4... 3... 2... "Where ya goin Jackie?" Adien asked pulling me up by the back of my neck. **RRRRIIIIIIINNNNNGGGGGG! **The bell sang. Our classmates rushed past us without a second thought."Have a great weekend everyone!" The teacher yelled out over the shouts "Can't ya just leave me alone?" I mumbled trying to slip out of Aiden's grasp. "I could," He said pulling Me under his arm and guiding me out the door and down the hall. "But I don't wanna." He chucked as people bumped past us."When are ya gonna hook me up with your sister? I'd love to show her what it's like to be with a man." He said looking down at the scrawny kid. I spotted Joy coming our way when Aiden wasn't looking and motioned, as discreetly as I could, for her to go the other way. Sadly I wasn't discrete enough. Aiden caught her in the corner of his eye. He pushed me down and jogged over to her. "Hey Joy. " He said coolly. She ignored him completely and went to go help me up. "So, what are you doing over the weekend?" He tried. Once again ignoring him Joy addressed me. "You okay, Jay?" I looked up nervously at Aiden then back at my sister. If I didn't know anything else about Aiden I knew one thing: He didn't like being ignored. I nodded hesitantly and we began walking towards the car lot. Suddenly furious, Aiden grabbed Joy's arm and flung her against a locker. "I know you heard me, bitch." He snarled in her face. "I heard you," she spoke through the pain. "Maybe someday you'll say something intelligent!"_  
_"Ya know what kid? You're funny." Aiden said lifting the delicate girl off her feet by her throat. "How 'bout i wipe that stupid smile offa ya face?" Joy braced for impact, screwing her eyes shut and turning her head. "Leave her alone!" I yelled punching the large guy repeatedly in his back. Aiden swung his arm back, hitting me. I flew across the hall and through the full length glass window that lined the left side of S hall. I tried to muster up all of my strength to get back up. I grabbed the biggest piece of glass i could find and made my way back over to Aiden and my sister. I quickly stabbed the bully in his side. Aiden cried out and dropped Joy. She lay in a crumpled heap at Aiden's feet. Aiden punched me in the face making me drop the glass and sending me once again across the room. I hit the door and The last thing I heard before blacking out was Joy yelling "Help! Help! Someone come help!"_

Two gaurds rushed in and grabbed Jack before she could acknowledge them. "It seems as though time is up for the day, Jack." She whispered taken back by how much the boy divulged in such a small amount of time. They had no time to set boundaries, no time to create a trust bond. People normally took at least three sessions to tell her anything. Even then it's normally a lie, but what he was saying, the way he said it, it had to be the truth.

* * *

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	2. Hallelujah

_**"One last time and one good story" ~Hallelujah Fit for Riva****l****s**_

"Hello again, Jack." Dr. Rivera said dominantly. He nodded at her courteously. "You can start whenever you're ready."

_I woke up with the biggest headache of my life. I tried my hardest to will my eyes to open. After more strain that was necessary I opened them. My surroundings confused me greatly. In front of me of to the side a little was a sink and a mirror. I saw myself in a hospital bed and directly next to me was an IV, a heartbeat monitor, and a bunch of medical tech. To the left was a door. To his right was a window. The window was longer than the couch in front of it. On the couch was a man in a suit sleeping . He looked like he dozed off and wasn't supposed to be sleeping. I opened my mouth to speak but my throat and mouth were so dry i couldn't. I looked around for something to throw at the man but before I could a nurse walked in. I looked up at her hardened face. The man on the couch woke up and looked from the nurse to me. She proceeded to check all of the equipment in silence taking chance after chance to scowl at me. She left in silence. The man in the suit stood from his couch and approached the bed. "My name is Detective Mitchell." I looked up at the detective Confused. "I'm investigating the murder of Joy Napier and Aiden Floyd._" Murder. Joy was murdered. Aiden killed Joy._ I was almost immediately overcome with rage at this thought alone. I found my voice and used all the air in my lungs to scream._

"You see, Joy was my best friend." He said tearing up. Claire gasped slightly at the sudden emotion and passed him the box of tissue on the table next to her. He reached slowly for it, but sized her arm instead. She looked him in his eyes as the tears fell. "I did not kill my sister." He sniffled. "Aiden did." She nodded, desperately trying to free her arm. For such a small boy he was strangely strong. "Please continue your story, Jack. Our time for the day is almost up." He slowly released her arm and put his arms back in his lap. He hung his head and spoke quietly.

"I cried then, in the hospital, too. The detective wasn't as sincere. He didn't care that I just lost my best friend, or that they blamed the wrong person. He just wanted me to confess to something I didn't do. No one will ever get a confession from me for killing Joy Napier." Just then the timer went off and two big burly guards rushed in and took Jack away without a word. As soon as the guards left she stopped the hidden recorder and opened his file. The picture of the two seventeen year olds mangled in a bloody mess right in the middle of the hallway in Gotham High School made even less sense than it did before. Jack sincerely didn't believe that he killed Joy. But he hasn't said anything about killing Aiden. "God, I'm stupid!" She whispered to herself as she quickly gathered all of her things. She rushed to her office and set the small recorder onto her desk. She rewound the tape and pressed play.

"A confession!" She turned to open Jack's case file and scribble down an extension on her notes from today. Next session would be different.

Xxxxx Jack xxxxX

He was sitting in the corner of the rec room shuffling his deck of clear cards when Laci and Lita saw him. The twins were pretty and used this to their advantage. The young girls often seduced the men of the asylum to help them escape. Jack looked as if he could help them nicely. Laci stole Dr. Leland's copy of his file. "Look at the new kid, Lita!" She whispered to her sister. "His name is Jack. He's in here because he killed his sister and her boyfriend and he doesn't remember it." Lita perked up and pulled her sister until they were beside him. "What's the diagnosis, Dr. Laci?" Lita chirped to her sister. "I dunno, Dr. Lita. I'm thinking he's deluuuuuuusional!" He looked up and eyed them both. "Excuse me. I want to be alone right now, so can you please-"  
"Oh, he's a chatty one Dr. Laci. I think he needs a double dosage of melatonin tonight!" Lita said as Laci pulled out his file and added Melatonin to his already long list of meds. "Hey, how'd you get that?" He asked slipping his cards into his pocket. The girls sat on either side of him and cuddled up with his arms. "We can do alot of things, Jack." Laci purred. "But we heavily believe in reciprocity." Lita said, drawing hearts on his sleeve with a randomly produced purple marker. Laci put his file on the table and sliding him towards him. "We are planning an escape and we need some brawn because, as you can see, we are terribly small and we really don't belong here." Lita said as she stared longingly at her art. "You wanna help? We can even have you declared legally sane and get you out of here because we can tell that you don't belong here either." Laci began. "We know you didn't kill those people Jack." Lita slipped a key card into his pocket as they both stood. "That's the master key straight from Leland's pocket." She said turning on her heel to walk away. "IF you're interested come to cell block D after lights out." Laci said following her sister.


	3. Get With Me

**_"Whoa, whoa, baby come and get with me whoa, whoa, I'll show you the time of your life" ~Get with me by Fit for Rivals_**

Xxxx Jack xxxX

"Cell block D?" Jack asked himself after lights were out. He shuffled his deck, coming across the key card every few shuffles._ How would i even get out of this cell? It's a glass door locked from the outside. _He thought getting up and looking across the hall. The man in the cell across from his was frowning at him. "What's wrong buddy?" He asked seeing the look on Jack's face. Jack fanned out his cards and showed him the deck, pointing out the key card. The man nodded and pointed at the wall next to Jack's cell. The side with the electronic lock. He dislodged a rock from the wall and wrote something on the wall. It said "_Strong Magnet." _Jack put the whole deck up to to wall and his cell opened. He promptly opened the man's cell. "Thanks, man but I'm good here." The man said laying down on his cot. "Well what's your name?" Jack asked. "Rocco." He said looking up at him. "Rocco, do you know where Block D is?" He asked looking both ways down the hall. "Up the hall, through the door, to the left, go all the way down the corridor, it's the large door on the right. You'll need the key twice." Rocco said confidently. "And while you're there tell the twins," he said gesturing to the heart design on Jack's sleeve. "That I said hey."

"You're late." Laci said ask Jack came down the hall. She looked across the hall at her sister's cell."Yea. The guy across the hall, Rocco, I think, said hi." They mirrored each other perfectly, pulling out their own key cards and opening their cells. They stepped out and gestured for him to follow. The trio ran quietly down the halls until the girls stopped at a room. "This is one of the only rooms in the whole asylum that doesn't have cameras." Laci whispered as Lita opened the door with her card. She flicked the lights on and walked in. It was Dr. Rivera's office where he had his sessions with her. "Claire is a good doctor, but she's very messy. She tends to leave her recorder in here." Lita said going over to the table and reaching under. She pulled out a recorder that he'd never seen before. She put it on the table and pressed play.

_"-No one will ever get a confession from me for killing Joy Napier."  
__Rrrrriiiiiinnnnnngggggg!  
__Door slams open.  
__Chair scraping the floor.  
__Shoes being dragged across the floor.  
__Door closes.  
__Click._

_"Jack has pretty much confessed to killing Aiden Floyd. Next session, if i can guilt him into admitting altogether, he's away for life-"  
Click_

"I think that's enough." Lita said. "You can't trust that woman, Jack." Laci agreed. "Next session, play the dumbest you've ever played. Make her believe she's wrong." Laci continued as Lita played with the recorder. "Go on back to your cell and remember what we said. We'll take it from here."

When they brought him in Dr. Rivera's demeanor was the same as normal. It was when the guards left that the atmosphere took a turn. She got up from her chair and dragged it to the door securing the door in it's place. she turned to Jack who looked slightly frightened and slightly confused. She pulled out her recorder and pressed play. They sat in silence for a few moments. "What the hell?" She whispered. He looked up at her. She sighed and asked him "What about Aiden?" He repeated. "Don't play coy, Jack. I know you killed Aiden." She stared into his eyes hoping to intimidate him. Sadly it worked to well when the boy seemed to tear up. "Dr. Rivera... I don't know what you're taking about. I'm sorry that you don't believe me but it's the truth." He whispered as a single tear fell. She realized what was happening and paced back and forth. If she was being observed right now, today would be the day Leland fired her. Sighing she took her chair from under the door and posed the button that summoned the gaurds. When they burst in she was sitting at the table across from Jack with her head tucked down into her folded arms. Her eyes bore into Jack's and they were the only part of her face he could see. "Today's session is over." She mumbled as they made their way around to Jack.


	4. Better Off (Alone)

_**There's nothing left for you to say, it's the same old story~ **__**Better Off (Alone) by**_ Fit For Rivals

As he was being taken out of the room Dr. Rivera noticed that Jack's sleeve had a doodle on it. She normally would've passed off at something done out of boredom, but this particular doodle was familiar. Her patient Lita and her twin sister Laci often drew this design in places and in people as a way to mark their territory. The twins probably had Jack wrapped around their fingers. Dr. Rivera got up and made her way to Dr. Leland's office. When she arrived at the office Leland didn't look busy so she knocked. She looked up and invited her in. "Hey, Claire." She said pushing her papers to the side. "Good afternoon, Joan." She said warmly. Dr. Rivera considered Joan as a friend. When she applied for a job here at Arkham Joan was the one who convinced Dr. Arkham and Dr. Strange, Leland's two advisers, to give her the job. "To what do i owe this random visit? Please, sit." Joan said gesturing to the chair across from her desk. "Oh, no need. I just want to request an off-schedule meeting with one of my patients." Claire said giving Joan Lita's file. "Any reason in particular?" She asked looking through the file. Claire pointed to the doodle she saw quite often. "This is the equivalent to a gang symbol. It's been found on patient's clothes, in cells, on walls, and on the table in the recreational room where Lita and her sister Laci sit. Everyone who has been marked has been included in a break-out where the twins escaped then beaten within an inch of their lives. This was on Jack's sleeve today. Jack Napier. The new patient. He's been here not even a week and my personal files and recorder have already been tampered with. I need to find out what they want with him." Claire explained. "What time do you want her?"

* * *

Lita, Laci, Jack, Rocco, and some other people Jack didn't know sat around the twins' table. They spoke around the table in hushed tones about something they were planning. Jack sat quietly looking around the table and shuffling his deck. Laci and Lita got him a new one. This one was different than most decks. They explained that Alice had the master key card encrypted into the ace of spade. She reminded him of Joy. She was smart and beautiful and when she smiled her eyes seemed to smile as well. "Hey." Laci whispered to the group pointing to Dr. Leland who was approaching fast with her two massive guards standing in the doorway. "Lita. Dr. Rivera has requested a meeting with you." She said standing over the group. She looked from person to person spotting the marking that Dr. Rivera had pointed out. On each of the people around the table who scowled at her, on the table, and even on the deck of cards Jack was shuffling. Lita let go of her sister's hand, which Joan didn't notice she was holding, and followed the doctor over to the door where one of the guards put a pair of handcuffs on her. "Is there any reason in particular she wants to meet with me the day after our regularly scheduled appointments, Joan?" She young girl asked as they were escorted down the hallway. "It's Dr. Leland, and I am not allowed to say." Lita looked up at her. "Joan. Will my time be compensated?" Leland sighed and walked in silence for the rest of time she had with the girl. When they entered the room Dr. Rivera looked up. "Come sit, Lita." She did what she was told. As soon as Leland everyone else left Lita spoke. "What do you want Claire?" The doctor shot her an icy glare. "I should be asking you the same question. What do _you _want with Jack?" Lita let out a light-hearted laugh. "Do I sense jealousy radiation from your direction... _'Doctor'_?" Claire pushed the stray hairs in front of her face behind her ear. "Don't worry Claire. Jack is a special one. I don't think me and Laci will be letting him go. You said it yourself on page six of your doctor's notes: 'If he was aware of what he was capable of doing he could turn into a serial killer.'" Claire looked up at her, stunned. She quoted what she wrote in Jack's file which means she knows _everything_ about him. "And your plan," Lita continued. "Is to just let him live in this fantasy world where he's just a little 17- year old nerd who has no clue that the person who killed his sister and her boyfriend is him. But the thing is Claire, you misdiagnosed poor Jack. He is not just schizophrenic. He's got multiple personality disorder, he's delusional, he's schizophrenic, he's a narcissistic sociopath, and he's got a murderer mentality. I didn't go through 12 years of school but i diagnosed your own client better than you ever could. Now, will i be compensated for this complete waste of time or not?"

* * *

Alice, Rocco, Laci, and Jack were the only ones still at the table when Lita got back. "Lita, what happened?" Laci asked as she approached the table. She ignored her sister and turned to Jack, who was flirting heavily with Alice. Without speaking she pulled him up to his feet and tore both of his sleeves off of his jump suit with little to no resistance from him. She then pushed him towards a group of large guys sitting around playing cards. He tripped over his feet and hit his head on the side of the metal table. He stood slowly, his back facing Lita. "C'mon Jack. Fight me." He turned around revealing a wicked grin on his face. The side of the table had a piece of jagged metal that had cut the side of his face into a half Chelsea smile. The people he was just sitting with looked up at him in horror. His entire demeanor had changed. His posture straightened up and "Oh, no my dear. I could never _fight_ a lady like you." He chuckled. Lita looked around for some guards but all of them were up in the watch tower not paying attention. She opened her mouth to scream help but before she could even inhale he had his hand around her throat and her feet were at least a foot off the ground. "Leave her alone!" Laci yelled as the color drained from Lita's face.  
_"Leave her alone!" You're no better than Aiden. A_ voice in his head said. He dropped the girl instantly terrified of the devastating truth. The guards finally realized what was going on and apprehended Jack, who stood dazed. _I killed Joy. _


	5. Burn

**_"Go back, back to the beginning" ~ Burn by Fit For Rivals_**

**_NOW_**

_You're withholding my memories. _He thought to himself, or... To the other him. The one who killed Joy. He knew he'd done it when he recognized the fear in Lita's eyes and the pain in Laci's voice. _It's for your own good. _IT said. He didn't know how else to refer to him. IT wasn't a him. IT was a state of mind that he didn't know that he had. _What really happened there? _He asked IT. IT responded with an ambush of memories._  
_

_Jack had been scowling at Aiden all class. He hated every aspect of the class because he was in there. The teacher was yelling at some girls in the back of the room to sit down and something about the bell but he wasn't paying attention. He wanted to leave the class before Aiden tried to make conversation. He glanced up at the clock as Aiden got up and was making his way over. Aiden and his sister had been dating for a year on tomorrow. The bell rang and Jack bolted out the door. Joy was walking up the hall towards him when Aiden bumped past him and scooped her up in his arms. They kissed as he put her down. The girls from the back of the class walked past Jack talking loudly to each other about how "cute" of a couple they were deepening his scowl. _

IT interrupted his memories. _Do you know how bad you want to kill someone to choke them to death? It takes a few minutes for asphyxia to happenthen a couple more minutes for the brain to die._

_What else happened?_

_Do you really want to know?_

_Do I?_

"Do I?" He asked out loud. He'd been in solitary since he'd "attacked" Lita almost a month ago. He had solitary for 30 days and he'd already served 27. The only thing that kept him from going stir crazy was Claire. He no longer called her Dr. Rivera. IT didn't know her as Dr. Rivera. IT knew her as Claire. IT liked Claire. Claire knew this. She'd met IT.

_**24 DAYS EARLIER**_

"Why did you attack Lita, Jack?" Claire asked him two weeks ago in their session. IT came out and laughed. "I needed a good laugh Claire." She looked up at him confused. "Everyone keeps on asking me why _I _attacked _her,_" He said, his blazing green eyes piercing her innocent blue ones. "No one cares to ask why _she _attacked _me._" She remembered seeing a stitched up, yet still very grotesque, cut traveling from the corner of his mouth up to his jaw the day it happened. The ladies in the infirmary had to give him a sedative so that they could stitch it up. "Can _you_ tell me why she attacked me Claire?" he asked. "You were the last person she spoke to before she did it." Claire looked down immediately ashamed of what she'd done.

_**4 DAYS EARLIER THAN THAT**_

"No, Lita, you will not be compensated for 'your' time." The young girl sighed. "Unless you can prove what you've just said."Claire said glaring at Lita. "I will declare you and your sister legally sane if you can do that. And you know better than anyone that that's a on offer you can't refuse." Lita thought this over. All she had to do was make him mad enough to unleash the murderer mentality. His fuse shouldn't have been too short since the entire time he'd been in here he never hurt anyone or thing.

_**NOW**_

_Claire is probably off right now..._

_Yea. So?_

_So? Sooo... Let's pay her a visit!_

_We are in the deepest and most heavily guarded part of Arkham and your saying that we break out?_

_...Yes._

_How?_

_You'll see._


	6. Can't Live Without You

_**"**__**If there's any way I could prove to you then maybe you'd believe" ~ **__**Cant live without you by Fit For Rivals**_

"C'mon Jack." the guard urged him to get up so he could take him to the rec room. "I'm not ready to see..." Jack looked around as if someone else was listening and he didn't want them to hear. "_P__eople._" He whispered to the guard, who was having none of this fuckery today. He pulled Jack to his feet, put the handcuffs on him and literally dragged him to the rec room kicking and screaming. As soon as he was pushed into the room IT spoke to him. _Yo__u're just a little bitch huh, Jack? _IT chuckled as Jack looked over at the twins' table and saw Rocco and Alice. They waved him over. _You know that as long as you have me you don't need to be afraid of these heathens. _Jack ignored IT and walked over to the two. "I didn't think you'd want anything to do with me after what happened..." he trailed off. "Not want anything to do with you?!" Alice gushed, pulling him into a warm embrace. "I feel like one of the munchkins after Dorothy freed them from the wicked witch of the west!" She squealed. Jack looked around at the people scattered around the room. Everyone's eyes were on him and IT scowled at some of the larger guys in the corner. Alice put her hand on Jack's arm. "They're bitching because the twins were their providers and you got rid of them." Alice said following his gaze. She looked up at him for a second then her eyes traveled down to his scar. The stitches had healed but he still visited the infirmary once a week for it to be checked on. "Well then!" Rocco said suddenly breaking through the silence. "Looks like those guys over in the corner need my help with something..." He said getting up and gesturing vaguely elsewhere. He walked away with no set destination. _I would love to join Roc right now. The fuck is up with all this unnecessary fluff? _IT asked making Jack shake his head. Alice cocked her head to the side in confusion. "Everyone who's read my file thinks that i suffer from..." He started to explain but trialed off. _You don't know do you? _IT asked. Before he could answer IT took the chance to take control. "I suffer from multiple personality disorder, that's my biggest one, my other personality suffers from schizophrenia, _I_ have anger management problems, and we're both narcissistic sociopaths." He said. He leaned in to whisper in her ear. "I wouldn't trust ol' Jackie too much if i were you... He's also a compulsive liar." She looked up at him with a blank unreadable expression. "You're less of a nutcase than i am!" She said bursting into a fit of giggles. "They can't even diagnose me!" She gasped doubling over in her chair. IT looked down at her cracking a smile himself. Her laugh was contagious and soon the two of them were doubled over together laughing uncontrollably. Rocco walked past the two in his handcuffs being escorted by a guard. "It's all giggles and shits till someone giggles and shits." He murmured to the two making them laugh even louder. After about five more minutes of continuous laughter Jack and Alice were taken out of the rec room and ecsorted back to their cells. Jack lay in his cot until the guard came to get him for his session with Claire. He sat up clutching his sides as the guard stood in the doorway. "Your session has been rescheduled to a later date." He grunted making all of Jack's giggles vanish in thin air. "Did Claire authorize this?" He asked. "_DR. Rivera_ is fine with this." He said trying to correct him. As the guard left Jack lay back on his cot, his mood decreased. _Where is Claire today? _IT asked bluntly. "Wouldn't we all like to know?"

* * *

_**THAT NIGHT**_

She couldn't live with the guilt. Lita was in the hospital, Rocco, Jack and Laci were in solitary, all because she was too attached to Jack. That's right. She was emotionally invested, if not in love with, this- This child! When Lita told her the truth about Jack she refused to believe it. She'd made an illegal deal with her that could've gotten her doctor's license revoked. But Claire was a woman of her word. Before she left the office that night two weeks ago she signed off on the papers that let Lita and Laci walk free. And to apologize to Lita for what happened she slipped two train tickets to Metropolis into their belongings. As for Jack she couldn't face him today. She remembered the cut that split his face in half. When she pulled up in front of her apartment she knew that she'd lived through another day. Upon entering she realized that the lobby smelled sickeningly _sweet _and it gave her a headache immediately. As she walked up the stairs her headache grew more and more and the cool comfort of her bed beckoned to her. She fished her keys out of her bag absent-mindedly only able to think about her bed. She didn't know exactly what was making her headache this bad. She unlocked the door and walked in. She smell that met her downstairs hit her full force when she stepped in. She knew what was happening and before she could turn and run the chloroform got to her and she fainted.


	7. Girl in a Coma

_**Its a shame you'll never know how much you've got to lose" ~Girl In A Coma**_

_This whole Alice think is getting boring Jack. You know how I am when I get boooored. _IT sang in his head as Jack was being escorted to the rec room. _Shut up. _He thought. When he got to the rec room a couple people were crowded around the small TV in the corner. One of the people looked up at Jack and waved him over. He made his way over to the group and looked at the TV. _"- Laire Rivera, head therapist at Arkham Asylum, has been found after three weeks of being missing. She was found in an abandoned house. She is now at Gotham Central. In other news-" _IT wanted to hear no more of this. IT grabbed the person who called him over and lifted him by his collar. "Why in the hell did you call me over here?" He snarled in the small man's face. The man pushed his glasses up his face nonchalantly. "I though you'd like to know since she _is _your doctor. Is she not?" Jack regained control when he spotted Alice out of the corner of his eye. "You haven't been back one day and you've already upset the most angry guy in the asylum. Do you have a death wish, Eddie?" Alice said as she approached the two. Jack set the man down as Alice leaned up and kissed his scar. The man straightened up and fixed his jumpsuit. The man was about the same height as Jack, if not shorter. He stuck out his hand. "Edward Nygma. At your service." Jack took his hand firmly. _Limp noodle. _IT said uninterestedly. "Jack Napier." Jack said. Edward fixed his glasses again and walked away. _There's a strange one. _IT said. Alice pulled Jack over to a table and sat down. "Christmas is eleven days away!" She squealed. Jack looked down sadly. _Joy liked Christmas as well, huh? _IT asked almost sympathetically. _Christmas was her favorite time of year. She'd walk around singing 'It's beginning to smell a lot like Christ-mas!' till the day came. She acted more like a little sister than a twin around this time of year. _Alice looked down at him and hugged him, not asking for and explanation. "You didn't do it, Jack. That joker in your head did." she whispered in his ear. IT perked up at this. _Joker, huh? _IT laughed. _Fits me well, don't ya think, Jack?_ Jack scowled at IT. _I have no time for you 'Joker'. _He thought. "Mail call!" An inmate who just entered the room yelled. Alice let go of him and they both looked over at the person as they began to read names off of the envelope fronts. "Edward Nygma!" He bellowed. Eddie got up and walked over and plucked his envelope from the man's meaty fingers. "Alice Liddell." She got up and skipped over to the large man. She said something to him but they were too far from hearing range for Jack to hear them. The man read something else off of the envelope and passed it to Alice. She turned to Jack and looked down at the envelope again. Her face fell as the color drained. She moved quickly back to the table and gave the envelope to jack. "I don't wanna read it." She said crawling onto the table and laying down. "Read it for me..." She asked making herself small. He looked at her quizzically then down at what was in his hands. It only had her name, Arkham's address, and a stamp with a hat on it. He tore open the envelope and read aloud what it said.

"How _dare_ you try and hide from me. And leaving such a question unanswered.  
Very un-ladylike. It's fine though. Perfectly fine. Haigha and I will find you. Haigha is angry as well.  
Along with Me and Dinah. We'll find you Alice. We've found you before,  
We'll do it again.  
~Hatta"

_**~~~~~Alice~~~~~**_

_Have you any idea why a raven is like a writing desk?_

_Is because Poe wrote on both?_

_No, Alice, try again_

_Do they both stand on sticks?_

_Nuh-uh_

_Because... there is a B in both and an N in neither._

_Wrong again, Alice._

She looked up again frantic for an answer. "Why." She asked aloud. Jack looked up at her. "Why is a raven like a writing desk?" She asked. Jack cocked his head at her. "Why? Why is a raven like a writing desk! Why!" She shouted. Jack pulled her into his lap and shushed her. "But i have to know." She said tearing up. "I have to find out before they find me!" She told him shakily. "I told you Alice. I won't let them hurt you. Not Hatta or Haigha or Dinah or whoever it is after you." Her eyes darted frantically around the room. Jack came to check on her in the middle of the night, but she didn't mind she'd been writing out possible answers to the question. _That _question. That _accursed _question.

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I know that this chapter took a turn from Batman to Alice in Wonderland but it'll make sense in the next chapter.


	8. Reason

**_"Give me one good reason to believe in you again"~Reason by Fit for Rivals_**

"Alice?" Jack whispered as he entered her cell. She was sitting on the small cot with her knees pulled up to her chest, crying. Ever since that letter that was the only thing she'd do and he _hated_ it. This was not the Alice he had fallen in love with not long ago. _Oh, Jack. Can't we just off her and move on to finding out where Claire is? I miss her. Joan isn't half the therapist Claire is. Joan doesn't even compare! _Joker screamed in his head. He approached Alice cautiously. She'd been overly paranoid and he needed to move slowly around her to prevent her from freaking out even more. He touched her shoulder softly and she jumped looking up at him. She had aged twenty years over the past couple weeks. She stretched out her arms like a child towards him. She didn't talk anymore. He sat next to her and pulled her into his lap. He shushed her and cradled her in his arms.

_"I tried so hard, my dear, to show that you're my every dream__  
__yet you're afraid each thing I do is just some evil scheme_  
_a memory from your lonesome past keeps us so far apart_  
_why can't I free your doubtful mind and melt your cold, cold heart?"_

He was used to this routine now. He'd stay with her and sing until she fall asleep then he'd leave before the guards made their nightly rounds. But tonight? Oh, no. Tonight was different. Joker was more rowdy than normal and wanted nothing at all to do with Alice or her problems. He looked down at Alice in disgust and ceased Jack's singing. She looked up at him with big, watery baby blues. "Who are Hatta and Haiga?" He asked angrily. She instantly looked as if she'd been punched in the face. Jack wanted to take it back and sing to her more but Joker wasn't giving up control. He pushed her off his lap and stood over her. When she didn't say anything he got angry and narrowed his eyes at her. She gasped and started crying again. "I don't know if this is classified as _domestic_ violence," a voice called from the dark corridor behind him. "But you need to get away from _my _Alice." Joker turned toward the voice. "And who, _exactly_, are you?" he asked sarcastically. He heard Alice scramble to get up as the person stepped into the light. Alice shrieked and backed up into the man's eyes darted to her, silencing her. "MY name is Hatta." He began starting to move towards Alice. Jack placed himself between the two as he retook control. "What do you want from Alice?" He asked confidently. Hatta stopped and looked up at Jack. "I'm taking my Alice back. Who are you to stand in between us?" Jack simply giggled. Then he chuckled. Then he laughed. A loud, crazy obnoxious laugh. "I'm... The Joker."

Hatta looked on uninterestedly as this "Joker" character doubled over in hysterics. Seeing the opportunity he looked at Alice and motioned her over to him. She hesitated, which made him angry. He stepped closer to her. Joker's almost cat-like reflexes made him snap back to attention and stand in Hatta's way. Again. _As the saying goes,_ He thought as he glared at Alice. "A joker is a little fool who is different from everyone else." He said as Alice moved around the Joker. "He's not a club, diamond, heart, or spade. He's not an eight or a nine, a king or a jack." Joker tried to catch Alice's arm, but she evaded him easily and continued her trance-like march. "He is an outsider. He is placed in the same pack as the other cards, but he doesn't belong there. Therefore, he can be removed without anybody missing him." Alice stood next to Hatta as he put his arm around her. "And if you stand between me and **_MY_** Alice again, that's how it will be."

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Jostein Gaardner quote! :)


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